✯ zines
✯ ceramics
✯ photography
✯ radio
✯ more things!!!
Radio
In 2022, I joined 90.5 KSJS, San Jose State University’s student-run non-profit radio station. I quickly joined their ranks as one of their subversive rock (also known as sub-rock) DJs. Trained by then sub-rock manager, Espurr, we became great friends. When she graduated, I stepped into her role, leading the department in selecting non-commercial, independent, local and/or DIY music for live airplay in addition to facilitating ticket giveaways for shows happening in the Bay Area. Other tasks include the usual: social media management, making sure no one hot-boxes the studio, and managing my sub-rock DJs. Ya know... the usual. ദ്ദി ˉ꒳ˉ )
And like all other DJs on the KSJS roster, I also held a weekly 4 hour time slot to play awesome music by awesome people under the moniker ‘poseur’ inspired by my favorite icon and role model, Poly Styrene from X-Ray Spex and the song “I Am A Poseur”.
None of this, however, came freely. To earn my spot, I hosted various art-based workshops. My first was in screenprinting to provide an alternative to ordering a large batch of printed t-shirts. I volunteered to illustrate some designs and had a vote station-wide on a wining design. On the day of, I did a live demo of the screenprinting process to allow everyone present to print their shirts themselves.
These printing workshops quickly gained some attention within the station, and throughout my years there, I hosted more to continue skill-sharing what I was learning for my own art degree.
In addition to hosting printing workshops, I also hosted collage and zine making sessions. When I had joined in 2022, COVID had dwindled the number of members. I volunteered my zine-making skills from my first collaboration with my amazing friend, Mols Smurthwaite. Overtime as these zines got posted around campus bulletin boards and surrounding cafes, more students joined and eventually wanted to learn my processes.
Below are images from a collage workshop to make flyers rallying for “Radio” to be kept in the renaming of the RTVF (Radio, Tevelsion, Video and Film) Department at SJSU. At the time, the Deciding Institutional Forces were determining if the mention of ‘Radio’ should be preserved in the department name as they were working to combine the dance program.
The “R” in RTVF was one of the biggest signifiers of the existence of our student-run non-profit 60-something year old radio station and it was under threat! These flyers were duplicated and posted around campus. (Unfortunately, the Deciding Institutional Forces of San Jose State University still decided to proceed forward without consideration, and renamed the Department of Radio, Television, Video and Film to the Department of Film, Theater and Dance, taking the ‘R’ out.)
One of the many things discussed within the station and my friends was a lack of DIY spaces in San Jose for all ages to enjoy live music. With the help of my friend+assistant, Allyssa Demarchena, we teamed up with our community to throw a few shows to spotlight the local scene. KSJS’s subversive rock department hosted shows at Limo and After Hours (R.I.P. to both. They got shut down within a year or so...). These shows were a great opportunity for us to pass out some zines we had made to push our existence out there, so we tabled at each event! The money made from these shows were evenly split and given to each band that played.
In addition to the two shows we did in San Jose, we also collaborated with KSFS (San Francisco State) and KDVS (UC Davis) for a Battle of the College Radios. Allyssa and I tabled with prints, patches, and printed clothing that we made with our peers from one of the print workshops we held.
After two years of doing my sub-rock show, I decided to do an overnight electronic feature after a long period of curiosity for exploring outside my preferred on-air genre+yearning to do a time slot I had always wanted to do but never had the time nor energy for.
My last live broadcasted show with KSJS was called ‘poseur: wrapped up’. Playing artists from Sky Ferreira to Japanese Breakfast, I showcased how much my taste evolved since my passion in music began. Within my final broadcast I honored the veterans that came from the Rookie Mag 8tracks playlists that I obsessedly blasted on repeat in middle school (Frankie Cosmos, the Front Bottoms, Starry Cat, Tigers Jaw), danced to my personal throwback hits from high school (5 Seconds of Summer, Catfish and the Bottlemen, Small Crush) and celebrated the best years of my college experience with some of my absolute favorites (Chairlift, ESG, baby guts). But I mean, you can check the whole order of operations yourself. I was graduating college! The nosalgia of it all hit me hard...
Truth be told, I don’t know for certain if I am done with radio at all. I will never stop listening to music...that I know for sure. But if KSJS was the only chance I had, I feel so incredibly lucky and grateful to have stumbled upon them in the first place.
Wait! I also did a few extra things while I was here....
Interviews:
Respect Radio Series: Let Our Voices Be Heard
Show Reviews:
Mitski
Lorde